GIRLS BASKETBALL: Season in review, from A to Z

Spring-Ford brought the Pioneer Athletic Conference and District 1-AAAA titles home for the second straight year before claiming the ultimate prize: the first PIAA team championship in the school’s 57-year history.

Methacton, Boyertown and Pope John Paul II, meanwhile, reached the state tournament, while Perkiomen School notched its first league title in nearly three decades.

The area girls basketball season was rife with magical moments and memories, and here’s one final look back, from A to Z.

A is for Auckland. Upper Perkiomen senior forward Stacey Auckland averaged a team-best 13.1 points for the Frontier Division runner-up Indians, became the Tribe’s fifth 1,000-point scorer and finished her career with 1,028 points.

B is for Boyertown. The Bears went 10-3 in Liberty Division play and 19-10 overall, advancing to the District 1 quarterfinals (eventually finishing seventh in districts) and the PIAA-AAAA first round.

C is for coaches. Spring-Ford’s Jeff Rinehimer hit the 300-win plateau on the way to guiding the Rams to the state championship. Upper Perkiomen’s Pete Sovia guided the Indians to the PAC-10 playoffs and a winning campaign for the first time in 19 years, Methacton’s Craig Kaminski led the Warriors to their first PIAA tourney appearance in five years, Boyertown’s Jason Bieber presided over the Bears’ second trip to states in three years and Pope John Paul II’s Dave Baker oversaw the Golden Panthers’ initial berth in states.

D is for Deanna Mayza. The University of Hartford-bound 5-foot-7 guard, whose 1,499 points in her first four years (two at Upper Perkiomen and two at Hill School) rank 16th in area history, averaged an area-best 20.6 points in her final year with the Blues. She finished her three-year Hill career with a school-record 1,222 points.

E is for Eisenhard. Kaitlyn Eisenhard, Boyertown’s 6-foot-1 senior center, averaged 15.7 points for the Bears and finished her career with a school-record 1,420 points, 17th in area history. She helped the Bears win 82 games during her four years.

F is for foul shooting. Boyertown’s Kaitlyn Eisenhard wen to the line a mind-boggling 279 times (making 164 attempts). Methacton’s Kelsey Watson was 138-for-216 from the line, while Pottstown’s Alicia Rosenberger hit 95.5 percent of her free throws (21-for-22).

G is for the Golden Panthers of Pope John Paul II. PJP went 10-3 to win its third straight Frontier Division title, reached the District 1-AAA semfinals, then beat Lower Moreland 44-30 in the third-place game to earn its first PIAA tourney berth. Junior forward Ellen Chernaskey (9.6 ppg) and the senior duo of Taylor Bearden (9.2) and Haley Mesaros (9.2) helped the Golden Panthers to an 18-7 mark.

H is for Hill School. Despite a rash of early season injuries that led to a 1-4 start, the Blues rallied behind the trio of Deanna Mayza, Hillary Yoh (12.1 ppg) and Sara Graham (8.5) to reach the MAPL semifinals and PAISAA quarterfinals in a 13-12 season.

I is for injuries, the most notable being a season-ending ACL suffered by Boyertown three-year starter Brooke Mullen a few weeks before practice started. Mullen nonetheless suited up for every game and was an inspirational leader for the Bears.

J is for Jenna Carroll. The 6-foot Methacton junior center averaged 11.6 points and 8.0 rebounds, highlighted by a 27-point performance in a 65-33 victory over Phoenixville.

K is for Kinneer. Pottsgrove senior guard Marisa Kinneer finished second in the area with 55 3-pointers and led the Falcons with a 10.0 scoring average.

L is for Leonard. Perkiomen Valley, coached by Bill Leonard, went 13-10 overall and made the District 1-AAAA Tournament. Senior twin sisters Anna and Lauren Leonard averaged 4.3 and 4.2 points, respectively, for the Vikings.

M is for Methacton. The Warriors defeated Boyertown 61-58 in a one-game tiebreaker to earn a PAC-10 Final Four playoff berth, finished ninth in the District 1-AAAA Tournament and qualified for the PIAA Tournament.

N is for ninth-graders. Perkiomen School’s Kristen Burdo ranked sixth in the area at 14.3 points per game, while Perkiomen Valley’s Katie Armstrong (10.9) and Perk School’s Stephanie Falcone (9.3, 20 3-pointers) also had huge impacts as freshmen.

O is for overtime. In what had to be considered the PAC-10’s Game of the Year, Boyertown edged Methacton 66-65 in a 2-OT thriller Jan. 3 behind 24 points from Kaitlyn Eisenhard.

P is for Pupillo. Junior guard Nicole Pupillo averaged a team-high 17.2 points (second in the area) in helping Perkiomen School go 13-0 in Tri-County League play and 19-5 overall en route to a 64-36 victory over Barrack Academy in the TCL championship for the Panthers’ first league title since 1984. Pupillo will enter her senior year with 1,220 career points, 38th on the area’s career list.

Q is for quarterfinal. After falling in the District 1-AAA quarters in each of its first two seasons, Pope John Paul II downed Chichester 56-39 this time around behind 17 points from Ellen Chernaskey.

R is for rebuilding. Under first-year coach Tim Kline, Daniel Boone went 3-7 in the re-aligned Division One of the Berks Conference and 6-17 overall. Steph Sievers averaged 9.0 points per game and Shelby Vanderslice 8.5 for the Blazers.

S is for Spring-Ford. The Rams enjoyed a school-record 32-2 campaign, highlighted by a 53-23 win over Methacton in the PAC-10 final, a 51-30 victory over Mount St. Joseph Academy in the District 1-AAAA title game at Villanova University and a 60-45 victory over Cumberland Valley in the PIAA championship at Hershey’s Giant Center.

Seniors Brittany Moore, Sarah Payonk, Courtney Hinnant and Sammi Haas closed out a memorable 62-5 run over the past two years, while juniors Sammy Stipa and Shelby Mueller should help to make the Rams the team to beat in the area again next year.

T is for turnovers. No one forced more of them than Spring-Ford, whose relentless pressure resulted in 470 steals on the year (104 by junior guard Sammy Stipa).

U is for Upper Perkiomen. The Indians began the year on a 5-1 start and enjoyed a breakthrough 13-10 campaign for their first winning season since 1994-95. Upper Perkiomen finished second in the Frontier Division with a 6-7 mark to qualify for the PAC-10 playoffs for the first time in 19 years, and also earned its first District 1 Tournament berth in 18 seasons.

W is for Watson. Methacton senior forward Kelsey Watson averaged a league-best 16.4 points and 9.3 rebounds for the PAC-10 runner-up Warriors. Her 509 points established a school single-season record, her 938 career points rank fourth in school history and her 656 career rebounds rank second in school history.

X is the Roman numeral 10, a number worn by a couple of the area’s top 3-point shooters: Methacton’s Sarah Sherman (45 treys) and Spring-Ford’s Brittany Moore (44).

Z is for zero, the amount of points Spring-Ford limited Mount St. Joseph Academy to for a span of 13 minutes during their 51-30 win over the Magic in the District 1 final. It’s also the amount of times the Rams have lost in their last 10 district tourney games and last 30 PAC-10 regular season contests.